Kyrie Irving will be returning to Boston on Friday as the Celtics host the Nets in the first-round of the playoffs.
“I am just looking forward to competing with my teammates and hopefully, we can just keep it strictly basketball; there’s no belligerence or racism going on — subtle racism. People yelling s— from the crowd, but even if it is, it’s part of the nature of the game and we’re just going to focus on what we can control,” said Irving (via ESPN).
Brooklyn has a 2-0 lead and the road to the series win may be even easier with Jayson Tatum‘s status up in the air for Game 3.
More Eastern Conference Notes
- The Hornets are picking up James Borrego’s contract for next season, according to multiple sources. Charlotte made the play-in tournament despite Gordon Hayward and LaMelo Ball each missing significant time this season.
- Julius Randle is the 2020-21 recipient of the NBA’s Most Improved Player award and coach Tom Thibodeau believes it’s partially a result of Randle’s work ethic and how he came into the season. “You could see how highly motivated he was,” Thibodeau said (via ESPN). “And then when we had our short bubble, just his willingness to come in and work and lead and I could see how hungry he was. I felt like this was the guy that could help set the tone for us. And then he improved in every facet of the game.
- Tom Moore of The Bucks County Courier Times is among those who expect George Hill to be more involved for the Sixers now that the postseason is here. Hill missed significant time this season because of a thumb injury and only played in 16 games after coming to Philadelphia at the trade deadline.
